Plane crash victims identified

Published 8:00 pm, Monday, October 18, 2010

SEBEWAING TOWNSHIP — Two men killed late Monday in a plane crash south of the Sebewaing Airport have been identified following an autopsy today at Huron Medical Center.

Huron County Sheriff Kelly J. Hanson said while the results of the autopsy are not yet known as it relates to the cause of death, a positive identification was made.

Killed were Allan C. Lumley, 54, of Lapeer, the owner of the airplane and presumed pilot at the time of the crash and his passenger, Douglas Kerchner, 53, Goodrich.

Hanson said the crash remains under investigation today by officials from the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and National Traffic Safety Board (NTSB), who now have the task of determining the cause of Monday’s crash.

Hanson joined the FAA and NTSB today at the crash site just a half mile south of the Sebewaing Airport where the plane, a 1991 yellow and white Super Decathlon two-seater, went down in a farm field just before 6 p.m. Monday.

A female witness told police she observed the plane heading (south) away from the airport, then made a turn in the sky back toward the airport. The aircraft began to make a sputtering sound, then the engine quit completely and the aircraft fell straight down to the ground where it caught fire.

The Sebewaing Fire Department and local law enforcement officials were dispatched at 5:49 p.m. Monday to a field of corn stubble near Bay Street and Liken Road. Firefighters were given the green light by the NTSB to use the Jaws of Life to cut apart the aircraft to remove the bodies.

Look to the Tribune for a follow up to this story as details become available.